Tundra Swans Fly In For Fall and Winter Tours

As tundra swans migrate in from their Arctic summer grounds, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is offering a free opportunity to view them from November 2015 through January 2016.

Co-hosted with local farmers, the naturalist-led driving tours take place near Marysville at one of the premier viewing locations in the Sacramento Valley. The tours are ideal for both new and experienced birdwatchers.

The tundra swan is a large, white migratory bird, with a long neck and a six foot wing span. Relying heavily on rice, aquatic seeds and insects, the swan spends its summer in the Arctic and winters in many western states, with the Central Valley being one its main strongholds due to flooded rice fields. Wild ducks, geese, shorebirds, herons, egrets and raptors are also common in the viewing area, which covers 23,000 acres of rice fields.